Saturday, May 29, 2010

ON A ROAD LESS TRAVELED!



Riding our two-wheelers through the dusty roads of a small city in India, desperate to beat the heat and reach our coaching class on time, we came across two hapless girls who were lying in a pool of blood in the middle of the road. We were a group of anxious teenagers who hardly knew how to deal with situations like these. As we stopped our bikes wondering what would be the best plan of action, the group split into two-one group sticking by the classic advice that almost all parents give to their kids- "Stay away from situations like these, or else you would be in for some serious trouble'' and the other group being these adrenalin driven idealists who thought that even a small effort could make a difference. As the time ran out, I assumed the position of the decision-maker and at the cost of sounding presumptuous, declared that I would go ahead and help the girls. After wasting a few moments asking out for help from the cars that were passing by, I finally dragged one of the girls with my friend’s help and made her hold me as tightly as she could. I then asked my friend to sit behind her to ensure that she doesn’t fall. As I rode, the speed of my kinetic almost matched the speed of my pacing heart, my mind contemplating all kinds of possibilities. My friend remained silent, her mood matching almost mine. As we reached the hospital, a few ward boys rushed to help the girl. And then like a typical scene straight out of one of those masala Bollywood movies, the doctor refused to admit the girl without paying the admission amount of five hundred rupees.
I searched my wallet only to find fifty rupees that my father had given me to fill up the petrol, while my friend was able to shell out hundred bucks. As we stood in dismay watching our efforts going futile, I could hear my friends’ voices from behind. I saw them bringing the other girl who was less injured. And then the tacit understanding followed. We weren’t these diverging rays anymore, just a united force driven by a common factor called the ‘Youth’. We shelled out all the money we had, and finally ensured that the girls were treated.
A lot of chaos followed-the girl refused to divulge her parent’s number, we weren’t allowed to go till the police came and the doctors thought that we were responsible for the accident. Finally after a lot of persuasion, the girl finally gave her number. I was shocked from the response that I got-her family members not being concerned about her condition but only about the money that they would have to pay. My dismay grew as the police came into picture. My patience ran out as the police troubled my friends. Feeling guilty deep down that I had jeopardized my friends along with me, I asked the police to let my friends go and hold me for all the formalities. All of them refused to leave me and go.
 ‘For all of that is left in the name of humanity, don’t ransack it further. For all the help that we extended to help that stranger, all we get in return are these cynical questions and pointing fingers. I guess even I would become one of those parents who have burnt their fingers in the heat of youth just to suggest my kids not to help any strangers or else they would be in for some serious trouble.’ Today still thinking about the words that I said to the police officer, I wonder what would have crossed his mind that he let all of us go, for those words today sound as filmy as the situation I was in when I entered the hospital. Still the words worked, for maybe they were said with forthrightness and fervor. We didn’t get any thanks from the girls whom we helped, or from their parents. Still all of us had a smile across our face as we got out of the hospital. We were exhausted but exuberant. I knew I was glad to have such friends around; they were glad that they could come out of their fears to help someone they didn’t know, and all of us were glad to realize that we had become matured individuals to follow our own convictions and understand our responsibilities not only towards the growth of our future, but to the growth of humanity as a whole.
That was the day we decided the adage that we would be passing on to our kids-‘of all the religions in this world, humanity is the religion that is the toughest to follow- you can start it from the windfall of being a youth!’

7 comments:

Confused NEMO said...

awesome effort adu..i knew u wud do dat always....nice being frns wid such caring ppl...
i admire u for dat :)

Akanksha said...

well worded :)

Unknown said...

Great yaar,,,Great effort........Amazing....tum ladkiyon ne itana kiya...belive nahi ho raha....par tum hi kar sakti ho yeh b pata hai......

Unknown said...

hey aditi.. i rem this incident very well..i was there too.. nostalgic reading ur post... hope we did make a differnce

Unknown said...

again well wriiten and potrayed... :)
you are surpassing yourself with every article...
moreover, in this article, the sentiments and the awareness you have potrayed is juz out of this world... :)
great effort by great brave girls... ;)
keep writing... gud luck...!! :)

anuj0911 said...

greatness both in your words n actions...

you are becoming a good story teller.. ur articles cover diverse topics and tones.. n have something which gives food for thought..some one said 'u hav to be the change u want to be' just wonder somewhere down the line evry1 tends to forgets these basics.. but why...

AbsoluteMe! said...

I remember you and shweta narrating this story to me later that day and how shocked i was! You managed to recreate that after so long! Kudos!!! :)